Wool degreasing machine



Dec. 16, 1952 A. HOPKINS EIAL 2,621,506

WOOL DEGREASING MACHINE Filed ,Sept. 1'7, 1949 3Sheets-Sheet-1 v Ctttornegs Dec. 16, 1952 HOPKINS Eriu.

WOOL DEGREASING MACHINE :s Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed Sept. 17, 1949 THMMMWMI! Bnnentors HA RA Y 6'. 0R UM Dec. 16, 1952 A. HOPKINS EI'AL WOOL DEGREASING. MACHINE 3 Sheets-Sheet 3 Filed Sept. 17, 1949 w N w 0 aa YA MN .AM

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BS WWM attorneys By this direction of the circulation, the air of highest temperature enters the wool at the opposite side from the one previously exposed to the solvent and thereby initially traverses the most heavily laden solvent portion of the wool before passing through the top of the wool bed having a relatively low solvent content. As a result, the

evaporation of the solvent is complete and uniform throughout the thickness of the wool. This action is further aided by the direct radiant heat from the coils I.

For solvent treating in the processing section II, the bottom of the housing In is formed by a series of solvent open top collecting tanks I'L each extending transversely below the wool-supporting plate 13 and each so positioned as to collect solvent discharged from one of a number of spray units l8 located above the bed of wool. Since the number of spray units and tanks may vary according to requirements, the drawings show the assembly broken away lengthwise and indicating by A-B N such variation in num-' her. The preferred assembly includes eight a spray units and eight collecting tanks as this has been found to satisfactorily provide for the novel control of the ratio of solvent to wool. The tanks I! (Fig. 4) are each formed with sides converg ng downwardly to an outlet fitting 28 connected to the suction side of a centrifugal pump 2|, the discharge side of which communicates with its spray unit [8, by a delivery pipe 22 so that circulation of solvent through the wool is maintained continuous. Also, it should be noted that each tank is in side to side abutting relation with the next one so that the overflow of solvent continues from one to the other throughout the series. To facilitate this overflow, the top of each tank is vertically lower than the top of the preceding tank starting from the clean solvent inlet end of the machine, namely, next to the solvent reclamation section.

In order to supply solvent to the selected end tank I! of a series, in order to obtain the predetermined residual grease content of the processed wool, a main solvent supply pipe 29 leads from a source of supply to communicate with a delivery manifold 24 mounted lengthwise of the In each change of the number of tanks it should be noted that it is necessary to feed the clean solvent being used for processing directly to the last wash tank of the series rather than into the last tank N at the end of the solvent processing section. The first wash tank serves as the solvent level control because its contents are drawn o if at the bottom by pump 26 (Fig. 3) to be pumped through a control by-pass valve 21, so that a-percentage thereof is returned to this tank and the remainder delivered to a centrifuge and associated equipment for reclaiming. The pump ,26 which has been used satisfactorily has a camachine adjacent certain of the series of tanks H and provided with valve controlled solvent discharge outlets 25 forming supply inlets respectively to the tanks H. which the manifold 24 is intended to control. In operation of the washing, only one of these outlets 25 is open at a time, that one being the one selected to deliver solvent into the first tank of the series whichwill give the'predetermined residual grease content in the processed wool for a chosen solvent to wool ratio. Thus, where all of the tanks I! are used, the valve for outlet 25, which is to deliver solvent to the first tank l'l, namely the tank next to the solvent reclamation section, Will be open and all other valve outlets 25 will be closed. The solvent will thus fill the said first tank, supply its spray unit, and overflow into the next tank, and so on throughout the series.

Assuming there are eight tanks I7 and eigh spray units in the above illustration, a one to one solvent to wool ratio will give one required residual grease content. For a different ratio used to produce the same required residual grease content the number of tanks and spray units must be changed; for example, the valve outlets 25 should be set to use four tanks and four spray units, to give the same required residual grease pacity of forty (40) gallons per minute, so if the rate of supplying clean solvent is fifteen (15) gallons per minute into the last tank of any series, namely that at the far end of the solvent processing section of the machine, it will spill respectively into the tanks of the series until it reaches the first wash control tank where a float 28 is controlled by the solvent level. The control by-pass valve 21 is actuated by the float 28, through suitable leverage and since the float valve seeks a level which will be in equilibrium with the rate at which solvent is flowing into the first wash tank, the flow to the centrifuge would be the equivalent of the fifteen (15) gallons per minute feed of clean solvent and the balance of twenty-five (25) gallons per minute would be bypassed back into the tank containing the float.

In processing the grease wool with solvent such as trichlorethylene, it has been found that two classes of material are removed, one being the Wax or grease which is solvent soluble, and the other which is not solvent soluble. This latter is freed or dislodged from the fiber as the grease is dissolved by the solvent and gradually accumulates on the wool support and other parts to such an extent as to seriously afiect the eificiency of the machine. As a means for removing this collected material and maintaining the high efficiency of the machine, a plurality of water spray heads 30 are mounted at strategic locations throughout the length of the machine and so disposed that the overlapping discharged spray water covers all support and other areas subject to collected solvent insoluble material. Thus, in the solvent processing section II each water spray head 30 is above the wool support and between a pair of solvent spray units l8, so that the discharged water diverges laterally to wash an area exposed to the solvent. Also in the solvent reclamation section 12, each spray head 30 is above the wool support and so located that the row of water spray heads eifectively washes the entire area of the wool support. A manifold 3| is connected to a source of water under pressure and is mounted to parallel both the water section II and the reclamation section l2, and communicates with separate supply pipes 32 leading respectively to the spray heads 30. Valves may be provided for selectively controlling the supply of cleaning water, such, for example, as alternately admitting water to one section and then to the other. This selective operation has been found useful in maintaining a higher spray pressure.

In the form of the invention shown in Fig. 6 the raw wool is plunger fed onto one end of an endless wool conveyor 34 which supports and feeds the wool through both sections of' the machine, which generally is the same as heretofore described. In this form, the series of collecting tanks 35 'are arranged in overflow relation with each below a solvent spray unit 36, each of these latter are in a solvent circulation system including pump 31, suction pipe 38 from each tank 35, and pipe 40 from the pump discharge.

For the purpose of more effectively draining solvent from the wool following a solvent spray operation, the conveyor 34 in its travel between the spray units 35 and tanks 35, is caused to follow a predetermined irregular path such that each wool area leaving a solvent spray is sharply inclined to the horizontal. This result is obtained by guiding the conveyor under a series of guide rollers 41 and over a series of guide rollers 42, the latter series lying in a horizontal plane above the plane of the rollers 4|. The rollers 4| are mounted transversely of the machine in close proximity to a spray unit, while the rollers 42 are located also transversely but substantially medially of a pair of the spray units. Thus, the moving conveyor 34 carries the wool under the first solvent spray, under a roller 4|, to rise on a relatively steep incline to pass over the roller 42, then down a corresponding incline to pass under a weighted floating roller 43 and thence horizontally below the next solvent spray to pass under guide roller 4| and continue as described for the first stage. As shown, there are three successive inclined stages, so that after passing each spray, the solvent-laden wool is fed upward and downward on such inclines as to give considerably better and quicker drainage. This action is materially increased by the squeezing action of the heavy floating rollers 43 and consequently greatly increases the effectiveness of each stage of the washing section.

As a means for removing insoluble material from the conveyor 34, one or more water spray units 44 are located above an area of the empty return portion of the conveyor, and below which a receptacle 45 is located to collect and discharge the residue-laden water to the sewer pipe 46. This cleansing of the conveyor 34 is aided by the provision of rotatable brushes 4! through which the conveyor is led on its way back to wool-receiving position. Thus, in both forms of the invention, provision is made for washing out insoluble material collected on the wool support, such washing being arranged for either intermittent or continuous operation for stationary and moving wool supports.

Having thus described our invention, we claim:

1. A wool degreasing machine comprising a solvent processing section including a series of spray units for solvent arranged in spaced apart relation longitudinally of said section, a like series of tanks below and alined respectively with said spray units to receive solvent therefrom, means mounting said tanks for gravity flow successively from one tank into another, means to circulate solvent from said tanks to the respective spray units, means for feeding a bed of raw wool between said spray units and said tanks, a solvent supply manifold mounted beside a selected number of said tanks, means for introducing solvent from a single source to said manifold and valve controlled discharge outlets from said manifold to the respective adjacent tanks, whereby one outlet can be opened and the remainder closed to vary the number of tanks in operation in accordance with a given rate of solvent supply to thereby control the ratio of solvent to wool to maintain a predetermined residual content of grease in the processed wool.

2. A wool degreasing machine comprising a solvent processing section including a series of spray units for solvent arranged in spaced apart relation longitudinally of said section, a like series of tanks below and alined respectively with said spray units to receive solvent therefrom, means mounting said tanks for gravity flow successively from one tank into another, means to circulate solvent from said tanks to the respective spray units, means including a support for feeding a bed of raw wool between said spray units and said tanks, and means for supplying solvent to a selected tank only as the start of a tank series, whereby the number of tanks in series operation can be varied according to variations in the rate of solvent supply to maintain a predetermined residual content of grease in the processed wool.

3. A wool degreasing machine comprising a solvent processing section including a series of spray units for solvent arranged in spaced apart relation longitudinally of said section, a like series of tanks below and alined respectively with said spray units to receive solvent therefrom, means mounting said tanks for gravity flow successively from one tank into another, means common to all of said tanks for introducing solvent from a single source to said tanks, means for feeding a bed of raw wool between said spray units and said tanks, means for circulating solvent from each tank to each spray unit, and means for controlling said common introducing means to supply solvent from the single source at a given rate to a tank selected as the start of a series of tank operations effective for such rate to give a predetermined residual content of grease in the processed wool, whereby the number of tank series operations can be varied in accordance with variations of the rate of solvent supply to maintain the predetermined residual content of grease in the processed wool.

ALFRED HOPKINS. HARRY S. DRUM. JOHN P. G. PATTON.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 813,078 Bernhardt Feb. 20, 1906 899,339 Shuman Sept. 22, 1908 2,293,154 Lovett Aug. 18, 1942 2,360,257 Muller et a1 Oct. 10, 1944 2,368,916 Drum et al Feb. 6, 1945 2,391,096 Knight Dec. 18, 1945 2,408,191 Barnett et al Sept. 21, 1946 2,441,308 Bond May 11, 1948 

